fyi, you'll probably need at least 1000 I.U. of vitamin D per day to notice anything. I usually get the 5000 I.U. tabs from vitamin shoppe -- they cost 8 cents each in a 120 tab bottle. But I'm about twice your age and probably more decrepit.
Good luck with everything. The very fact you have a plan and are doing something will probably make a difference.
m741's ERE Journal
@bigato: I'm flattered, but the real struggle for me is following through. At least with basic stuff like getting rid of junk and taking pills, this is not so difficult. For exercise... it's a challenge.
As suggested, I am upping Vitamin D intake to 800 IU in pills + 200 IU from milk, spread out over the course of the day.
As suggested, I am upping Vitamin D intake to 800 IU in pills + 200 IU from milk, spread out over the course of the day.
I'm not sure 1000 IU will do it if you spend the entire day inside (according to recent researches). There's a nifty calculator here: http://www.vitamind3-cholecalciferol.co ... imator.xls
Now, I don't really know who runs this site. The illuminati? The all-powerful Vitamin D-industrial complex? Who knows? But if you already accept that you may be deficient, it seems like a good place to start.
Now, I don't really know who runs this site. The illuminati? The all-powerful Vitamin D-industrial complex? Who knows? But if you already accept that you may be deficient, it seems like a good place to start.
All I would say is that don't view the Vitamin D experiment as a failure or success until you've really gone whole hog on it. When I'm not getting sun I just take the 5000 IU pill and forget about it, because its super cheap and I know that's definitely more than I need. I also eat a lot of sardines (high in D) mostly for Omega-3 fatty acids, but that's an acquired taste for most people.
Hi m741,
when i dont feel like exercising i lower my expectation on myself on what i have to do that day to be satisfied with my exercise achievement that day. This helps take pressure off and stops my mind thinking negatively about the exercise. Once outdoors and exercising i find i am often comfortable to continue for longer than i initially decided i would do. That's how i get started when i dont feel like exercising, i commit in my mind to do 'something'- just a short run or cycle, to raise a sweat.
I personally consider exercise in the gym inferior to exercise outdoors. I gain a sense of wellbeing when i exercise outdoors, preferable close to nature,in a park or where ever, which i never experience in the gym.
when i dont feel like exercising i lower my expectation on myself on what i have to do that day to be satisfied with my exercise achievement that day. This helps take pressure off and stops my mind thinking negatively about the exercise. Once outdoors and exercising i find i am often comfortable to continue for longer than i initially decided i would do. That's how i get started when i dont feel like exercising, i commit in my mind to do 'something'- just a short run or cycle, to raise a sweat.
I personally consider exercise in the gym inferior to exercise outdoors. I gain a sense of wellbeing when i exercise outdoors, preferable close to nature,in a park or where ever, which i never experience in the gym.
-
LiquidSapphire
- Posts: 510
- Joined: Thu Jul 28, 2011 6:40 pm
I second the "lower your expectations" bit on exercise. The important part is making it a part of your life, and establishing the habit. I've heard the following "hacks" that have worked for various people:
1) Tell yourself "I only have to do 5 minutes, then I can quit if I want to." Usually, after 5 min, most people don't quit.
2) "I only have to put my shoes on, go outside, and close my front door." Usually by then people do what they had planned.
3) Get a buddy. Worked for me. I have a couple of walking buddies at work. On days I wouldn't have pushed myself to go out walking for lunch time, they call or show up wondering if we're going. I want to encourage the relationship and encouragement so I rarely turn them down. Works the other way too, days I'm itching to go, they'll go with me, even if the weather sucks, etc.
1) Tell yourself "I only have to do 5 minutes, then I can quit if I want to." Usually, after 5 min, most people don't quit.
2) "I only have to put my shoes on, go outside, and close my front door." Usually by then people do what they had planned.
3) Get a buddy. Worked for me. I have a couple of walking buddies at work. On days I wouldn't have pushed myself to go out walking for lunch time, they call or show up wondering if we're going. I want to encourage the relationship and encouragement so I rarely turn them down. Works the other way too, days I'm itching to go, they'll go with me, even if the weather sucks, etc.
Cyber peer pressure.....
A friend a work who knows how I tick asks me almost every morning, "Did you exercise this morning?" Its amazing how motivating that can be. I am comfortable enough with her to tell her to eff off if needed if I missed a workout but I find myself telling her about a work out if she fails to ask. Another powerful motivator is a work out partner. If someone is standing there waiting on you at 5am and you no show..........
Anyway. M741, did you exercise today?
A friend a work who knows how I tick asks me almost every morning, "Did you exercise this morning?" Its amazing how motivating that can be. I am comfortable enough with her to tell her to eff off if needed if I missed a workout but I find myself telling her about a work out if she fails to ask. Another powerful motivator is a work out partner. If someone is standing there waiting on you at 5am and you no show..........
Anyway. M741, did you exercise today?
@sshawn: No, I didn't... and I skipped today as well. But I have been taking my vitamins and will be exercising tomorrow.
I realized a few things today that also make me feel a bit better:
1. My mood definitely follows a cycle. I feel pretty bad from Sunday afternoon (realizing I wasted a weekend/must return to work) through Tuesday. But then the following weekend comes into view and I feel better. I don't know how to remediate this yet.
2. Another option besides working elsewhere is transferring within my company - it's the equivalent of a new job, but less hassle and I'd keep the same pay grade. Plus there are options to transfer to Europe/Asia, which could be really exciting.
3. Another big psychological lever is in how I frame things. The way I've been framing my current job is: "I am trading 6-7 of the best (healthiest) years of my life for ~500k". I still think that's roughly accurate. But I can also plan to come out of those 6 years with more than just the money, and it's my duty when I return home from work to further my skills in various areas. In other words, I can plan to get really good at 3-4 things that will serve me well in retirement, in addition to accumulating that much money.
I realized a few things today that also make me feel a bit better:
1. My mood definitely follows a cycle. I feel pretty bad from Sunday afternoon (realizing I wasted a weekend/must return to work) through Tuesday. But then the following weekend comes into view and I feel better. I don't know how to remediate this yet.
2. Another option besides working elsewhere is transferring within my company - it's the equivalent of a new job, but less hassle and I'd keep the same pay grade. Plus there are options to transfer to Europe/Asia, which could be really exciting.
3. Another big psychological lever is in how I frame things. The way I've been framing my current job is: "I am trading 6-7 of the best (healthiest) years of my life for ~500k". I still think that's roughly accurate. But I can also plan to come out of those 6 years with more than just the money, and it's my duty when I return home from work to further my skills in various areas. In other words, I can plan to get really good at 3-4 things that will serve me well in retirement, in addition to accumulating that much money.
"3. Another big psychological lever is in how I frame things. The way I've been framing my current job is: "I am trading 6-7 of the best (healthiest) years of my life for ~500k". I still think that's roughly accurate. But I can also plan to come out of those 6 years with more than just the money, and it's my duty when I return home from work to further my skills in various areas. In other words, I can plan to get really good at 3-4 things that will serve me well in retirement, in addition to accumulating that much money." -m741
whoa. thanks for the "aha" moment!
whoa. thanks for the "aha" moment!
This is going to be a two-part journal update (yes, it's long... no one's forcing you to read). First I want to discuss where I've been psychologically since my last update. And then there's numbers for September.
I appreciated all the advice people provided, and the fact that other people are in the same situaton. I followed the most actionable advice immediately. I picked up some vitamin D and I'm taking 800 IU daily, in addition to trying to drink more milk. I've been doing this for about two weeks now and I think it has an impact. I'd say I feel ~10% more energetic - noticeable but not life-changing. Still - that's a huge return for a couple bucks down. I'll try upping the dose soon.
When I look at what I do each day, between work, commuting, sleep, and preparing from work, there's about 21 hours. That leaves 3 hours unaccounted for, that mysteriously disappear in a haze of web surfing and watching TV.
So I'm writing out what I want to accomplish over the next few years. I'm thinking in terms of concrete skills I want to develop, as if they were college courses. I have energy to spend 1-2 hours on them each weekday, if I stay focused. For me, the high priorities right now are: programming python/C/C++, learning German, and learning to play piano/harmonica.
So, I started up Linux Mint on my laptop and started doing some programming, and then checked out some cool Linux programs, and -- long story short -- I'm now contributing to a very small open-source project. I'm also trying hard to get good at using vim. I spent about 2 years treating it like notepad despite knowing it was capable of much more... already I feel the power, and I'm still a total noob.
I also contemplated my mood. Sometimes I'm sedate, and sometimes my thoughts verge on the solipsistic, grandiose, quasi-religious. I think we were born to be put under stress, and to conduct ourselves with humility, dignity, tolerance under that stress. Sometimes I pass the test, and sometimes I don't. Each perceived indignity is a chance to prove myself.
Honestly, my mood swings more than Benny Goodman. At the beginning of this week I was feeling quite optimistic about work and so on - thinking that maybe I would work longer than previously planned, save 700k-800k and then retire at 30 to live a luxurious life. By midweek I was under an enormous amount of stress and was thinking that I wanted to cash out immediately, fly to Thailand, and work part-time to make ends meet.
The market hasn't been too kind to me this month: I ended up just treading water, not increasing my savings. I continue to invest steadily off my cash reserve and hopefully this will pay off in the end. It takes some getting used to that I now have so much invested that I can make or lose a week's worth of savings in a single day.
I've also been doing some reading on Tynan.com (suggested in the blog thread). He describes the life I want to live in retirement - traveling for about half the year, renting apartments for a month or two at a time in exotic locations, and then returning home for the other half of the year. It's so appealing to me... I want to get started immediately. But I still have a few years to go.
I'm also pursuing minimalism more rigorously now. Today I sorted through and discarded a two-drawer dresser, getting rid of old CDs, notepads, electronics. I'm replacing my crappy stuff with much nicer, more durable stuff, and getting rid of a lot of junk that I just never used but thought I might, eventually. That includes books. Although I'm not purchasing the new Kindle yet (I have an old e-reader), I'm thinking I could do 75% of my reading on it, or a device with equivalent technology. Given that, I can aggressively eliminate books. I still have about 1000-1500 left... so it'll still take a while. But every step I take leaves me feeling like a better person than I was before.
I appreciated all the advice people provided, and the fact that other people are in the same situaton. I followed the most actionable advice immediately. I picked up some vitamin D and I'm taking 800 IU daily, in addition to trying to drink more milk. I've been doing this for about two weeks now and I think it has an impact. I'd say I feel ~10% more energetic - noticeable but not life-changing. Still - that's a huge return for a couple bucks down. I'll try upping the dose soon.
When I look at what I do each day, between work, commuting, sleep, and preparing from work, there's about 21 hours. That leaves 3 hours unaccounted for, that mysteriously disappear in a haze of web surfing and watching TV.
So I'm writing out what I want to accomplish over the next few years. I'm thinking in terms of concrete skills I want to develop, as if they were college courses. I have energy to spend 1-2 hours on them each weekday, if I stay focused. For me, the high priorities right now are: programming python/C/C++, learning German, and learning to play piano/harmonica.
So, I started up Linux Mint on my laptop and started doing some programming, and then checked out some cool Linux programs, and -- long story short -- I'm now contributing to a very small open-source project. I'm also trying hard to get good at using vim. I spent about 2 years treating it like notepad despite knowing it was capable of much more... already I feel the power, and I'm still a total noob.
I also contemplated my mood. Sometimes I'm sedate, and sometimes my thoughts verge on the solipsistic, grandiose, quasi-religious. I think we were born to be put under stress, and to conduct ourselves with humility, dignity, tolerance under that stress. Sometimes I pass the test, and sometimes I don't. Each perceived indignity is a chance to prove myself.
Honestly, my mood swings more than Benny Goodman. At the beginning of this week I was feeling quite optimistic about work and so on - thinking that maybe I would work longer than previously planned, save 700k-800k and then retire at 30 to live a luxurious life. By midweek I was under an enormous amount of stress and was thinking that I wanted to cash out immediately, fly to Thailand, and work part-time to make ends meet.
The market hasn't been too kind to me this month: I ended up just treading water, not increasing my savings. I continue to invest steadily off my cash reserve and hopefully this will pay off in the end. It takes some getting used to that I now have so much invested that I can make or lose a week's worth of savings in a single day.
I've also been doing some reading on Tynan.com (suggested in the blog thread). He describes the life I want to live in retirement - traveling for about half the year, renting apartments for a month or two at a time in exotic locations, and then returning home for the other half of the year. It's so appealing to me... I want to get started immediately. But I still have a few years to go.
I'm also pursuing minimalism more rigorously now. Today I sorted through and discarded a two-drawer dresser, getting rid of old CDs, notepads, electronics. I'm replacing my crappy stuff with much nicer, more durable stuff, and getting rid of a lot of junk that I just never used but thought I might, eventually. That includes books. Although I'm not purchasing the new Kindle yet (I have an old e-reader), I'm thinking I could do 75% of my reading on it, or a device with equivalent technology. Given that, I can aggressively eliminate books. I still have about 1000-1500 left... so it'll still take a while. But every step I take leaves me feeling like a better person than I was before.
Hi m741,
Your description of your mood swings regarding work sound so familiar! One day I'm ready to hand in my resignation and take a long sabbatical and the other I have a hard-working pleasant day doing the things I love to do.
My manager is great, my direct colleagues are great, most of the people I work with at customers are nice people, there are lots of other benefits to my job, so sometimes I really wonder why I'm complaining.
But then the stress kicks in, demanding customers with high expectations, writing designs which I don't like, high demands on myself...and I'm again ready to quit at a moments' notice.
I keep trying to figure out what it is exactly that stresses me out so much, so that at some point in the future I can find a job that contains less of it, but it's difficult to pinpoint the exact causes...
Anyway, it's good to hear from someone in a similar position!
Your description of your mood swings regarding work sound so familiar! One day I'm ready to hand in my resignation and take a long sabbatical and the other I have a hard-working pleasant day doing the things I love to do.
My manager is great, my direct colleagues are great, most of the people I work with at customers are nice people, there are lots of other benefits to my job, so sometimes I really wonder why I'm complaining.
But then the stress kicks in, demanding customers with high expectations, writing designs which I don't like, high demands on myself...and I'm again ready to quit at a moments' notice.
I keep trying to figure out what it is exactly that stresses me out so much, so that at some point in the future I can find a job that contains less of it, but it's difficult to pinpoint the exact causes...
Anyway, it's good to hear from someone in a similar position!
September was a tough month for me, but on the other hand, I feel that I handled it well and I'm pretty happy with the numbers, even if they haven't exactly increased from last month.
Total expenses were $2,007. Total income was $6,722, so I hit 70% savings! I'm also very close to my goal of $2,000 and really I should have hit it, if I had more discipline. And yet I feel there's *still* fat to trim. Given my current indulgences, $2,000 a month isn't sustainable. But if I continue to trim, it is. $2,000 is an awful lot, but what I really care about is expenses over rent. I spent $600 excluding rent in September.
Breaking down what means for me: I currently have 85 months saved. I'm 30% of the way to my savings goal. I've doubled my ERE savings so far this year.
If I adjust for cost of living - a comparable apartment in Portland, OR, or in most other areas of the country would be $600 - I would be 50% of the way to my goal, and have 147 months saved.
My expenses break down as follows:
Housing: $1400
Food: $214
Utilities: $149
Donations: $32
Entertainment: $21
Health: $105
Work: $61
Pets: $22
Cleaning: $3.29
Looking ahead, October is going to be an ERE disaster. I'm traveling, for one thing, so that's already an extra $1000-$1500. After that, November should be very low-key, another chance to hit $2000, and December should be higher than I'd want due to the holidays, but still managable. Early next year, I have nothing planned so I should get off to a good start for 2012, and then I'll be moving to a cheaper location. So I have plenty of reasons to be optimistic.
My goals for October:
Do at least 25 minutes programming every day
Write 1000 words a day
Get rid of a large tupperware worth of junk
Limit TV-watching to two weeknights every week
Total expenses were $2,007. Total income was $6,722, so I hit 70% savings! I'm also very close to my goal of $2,000 and really I should have hit it, if I had more discipline. And yet I feel there's *still* fat to trim. Given my current indulgences, $2,000 a month isn't sustainable. But if I continue to trim, it is. $2,000 is an awful lot, but what I really care about is expenses over rent. I spent $600 excluding rent in September.
Breaking down what means for me: I currently have 85 months saved. I'm 30% of the way to my savings goal. I've doubled my ERE savings so far this year.
If I adjust for cost of living - a comparable apartment in Portland, OR, or in most other areas of the country would be $600 - I would be 50% of the way to my goal, and have 147 months saved.
My expenses break down as follows:
Housing: $1400
Food: $214
Utilities: $149
Donations: $32
Entertainment: $21
Health: $105
Work: $61
Pets: $22
Cleaning: $3.29
Looking ahead, October is going to be an ERE disaster. I'm traveling, for one thing, so that's already an extra $1000-$1500. After that, November should be very low-key, another chance to hit $2000, and December should be higher than I'd want due to the holidays, but still managable. Early next year, I have nothing planned so I should get off to a good start for 2012, and then I'll be moving to a cheaper location. So I have plenty of reasons to be optimistic.
My goals for October:
Do at least 25 minutes programming every day
Write 1000 words a day
Get rid of a large tupperware worth of junk
Limit TV-watching to two weeknights every week
Hello @m741,
Thanks for saying Hello back in the "Amish Economics" thread, bruv!
Big "Hello" to you too.
I am currently preoccupied trying to find some alternative income streams to help with my ERE goals (some kind of freelancing that is India compatible, so to speak). So, to help me focus I took time off like @Maus with an internet fast of my own.
I am still not finished with figuring the alternative streams, but thought I might pop in to say hello.
What can I say, I just like the bunch of you all too much to stay away too long
Thanks for saying Hello back in the "Amish Economics" thread, bruv!
Big "Hello" to you too.
I am currently preoccupied trying to find some alternative income streams to help with my ERE goals (some kind of freelancing that is India compatible, so to speak). So, to help me focus I took time off like @Maus with an internet fast of my own.
I am still not finished with figuring the alternative streams, but thought I might pop in to say hello.
What can I say, I just like the bunch of you all too much to stay away too long
I haven't watched TV for a few days. I've also sworn off (permanently?) the website that most monopolized my time - it was a sort of endless content stream. I enjoyed it, but it wasn't meaningful to me. TV took up 1-2 hours a night, the website took up the rest. Given that I can check blogs during free time at work, I'm left wondering:
"Now what?"
It's a great feeling!
"Now what?"
It's a great feeling!
Nice!
Consider canceling your home internet and selling your TV. Strike while the iron is still hot!
As you pointed out, you can do your internet stuff at work. Watch important TV events at friend's, and don't watch the unimportant ones. And you can always batch catch up on your hulu shows in six months when you're sick or something.
If you're not careful, all it will take is a bad day at work, and you're back on reddit again. (I'm just guessing at your endless content stream! And I'm assuming you work like I do, with bursts of motivation that eventually fade.)
As for now what, I recommend a social hobby. Here's a list of the type of social hobbies that other software engineers in my network enjoy:
- hiking/backpacking club
- rock climbing gym
- improv everywhere
- board/card game night
- ultimate frisbee team
- NYC group couch surfing events
PS: you can also do your vim/python/C/C++ learning in the office...
PPS: for learning piano, this thing is amazing: http://synthesiagame.com/
Consider canceling your home internet and selling your TV. Strike while the iron is still hot!
As you pointed out, you can do your internet stuff at work. Watch important TV events at friend's, and don't watch the unimportant ones. And you can always batch catch up on your hulu shows in six months when you're sick or something.
If you're not careful, all it will take is a bad day at work, and you're back on reddit again. (I'm just guessing at your endless content stream! And I'm assuming you work like I do, with bursts of motivation that eventually fade.)
As for now what, I recommend a social hobby. Here's a list of the type of social hobbies that other software engineers in my network enjoy:
- hiking/backpacking club
- rock climbing gym
- improv everywhere
- board/card game night
- ultimate frisbee team
- NYC group couch surfing events
PS: you can also do your vim/python/C/C++ learning in the office...
PPS: for learning piano, this thing is amazing: http://synthesiagame.com/
Great minds think alike!
I actually went without internet for about 6 months when I moved into my current apartment. It was doable, but there's too much useful stuff out there.
As for watching TV - I watch TV shows on my computer. I occasionally use my TV for watching movies from the couch, or for football on Sundays... but it's not a concern. It's the crack cocaine of TV + no commercials + full season torrents that is concerning.
I've tried to teach myself at the office. After all, it would look like I'm working even harder. I have O'Reilly's Safari available to me. But I want to be able to relax, wear more comfortable clothing, take out my contacts, etc, so it's not a great solution. Besides, I can work from home and access Safari there. I won't be giving up internet access any time soon, though I'm considering downgrading from Fios, probably at the same time I switch apartments.
Also - Synesthesia is awesome. I used it for a while when I was learning piano, then got distracted. I'll return to it when I'm interested in piano again. Very addictive.
I'll see if I can find people to meet up with for backpacking/frisbee/board games. It's definitely worth checking out.
I actually went without internet for about 6 months when I moved into my current apartment. It was doable, but there's too much useful stuff out there.
As for watching TV - I watch TV shows on my computer. I occasionally use my TV for watching movies from the couch, or for football on Sundays... but it's not a concern. It's the crack cocaine of TV + no commercials + full season torrents that is concerning.
I've tried to teach myself at the office. After all, it would look like I'm working even harder. I have O'Reilly's Safari available to me. But I want to be able to relax, wear more comfortable clothing, take out my contacts, etc, so it's not a great solution. Besides, I can work from home and access Safari there. I won't be giving up internet access any time soon, though I'm considering downgrading from Fios, probably at the same time I switch apartments.
Also - Synesthesia is awesome. I used it for a while when I was learning piano, then got distracted. I'll return to it when I'm interested in piano again. Very addictive.
I'll see if I can find people to meet up with for backpacking/frisbee/board games. It's definitely worth checking out.
Another month down! I was anticipating that this would be "disaster month," but it didn't turn out so bad.
I took a vacation in Europe for a bit over a week, and consequently was faced with a decision: should I include my expenses there, or not? I deliberated quite a bit and finally decided that it was a bad idea. That means that although I bought food on vacation, there's a week where it appears that I didn't buy food. Additionally, I didn't record expenses quite as diligently as I ought to, during the middle of the month. Consequently I think they're a little bit low.
Total expenses were $2,485. Total income was $6,737, for a savings rate of 63%. The trip to Europe was about $1650 total, so if I included that I would still have a savings rate of 40%. Outlying expenses included a few expensive wool clothing purchases, a few books, some Christmas lights, and a trip to Atlantic City (that's a different trip than the trip to Europe and *is* included in the numbers). I don't gamble and the AC trip was actually because I wanted to see an event there. But I spent the night with some friends so it totalled ~$140.
Luckily, the market recovered during October, and I ended doing well for the month, despite my profligate spending. I usually stay away from posting these numbers, but I hit $200k in total savings as of November 1!
Expense breakdown:
Housing: $1400
Food: $266
Utilities: $115
Donations: $32
Entertainment: $50
Health: $101
Work: $52
Pets: $30
Cleaning: $28
Clothing: $98
Other: $159
My financial goal for November is for my expenses to be Rent+$500. For me, that totals $1900. It's a challenge but I'm excited about it. Oatmeal and beans! It's totally reasonable.
---
One thing going through these numbers drills home is that "big" changes really do have a major impact. For instance, I spent a ton of money on things that are luxuries: nice wool shirt and wool socks, a trip to Atlantic City, some books and video games, etc. And yet, my expenses are at the same level as when I was struggling to hit $2500 when I owned a car. That's one reason I'm so excited that I'm changing apartments early next year (around March). I believe that will save me about $300-$400 per month.
I took a vacation in Europe for a bit over a week, and consequently was faced with a decision: should I include my expenses there, or not? I deliberated quite a bit and finally decided that it was a bad idea. That means that although I bought food on vacation, there's a week where it appears that I didn't buy food. Additionally, I didn't record expenses quite as diligently as I ought to, during the middle of the month. Consequently I think they're a little bit low.
Total expenses were $2,485. Total income was $6,737, for a savings rate of 63%. The trip to Europe was about $1650 total, so if I included that I would still have a savings rate of 40%. Outlying expenses included a few expensive wool clothing purchases, a few books, some Christmas lights, and a trip to Atlantic City (that's a different trip than the trip to Europe and *is* included in the numbers). I don't gamble and the AC trip was actually because I wanted to see an event there. But I spent the night with some friends so it totalled ~$140.
Luckily, the market recovered during October, and I ended doing well for the month, despite my profligate spending. I usually stay away from posting these numbers, but I hit $200k in total savings as of November 1!
Expense breakdown:
Housing: $1400
Food: $266
Utilities: $115
Donations: $32
Entertainment: $50
Health: $101
Work: $52
Pets: $30
Cleaning: $28
Clothing: $98
Other: $159
My financial goal for November is for my expenses to be Rent+$500. For me, that totals $1900. It's a challenge but I'm excited about it. Oatmeal and beans! It's totally reasonable.
---
One thing going through these numbers drills home is that "big" changes really do have a major impact. For instance, I spent a ton of money on things that are luxuries: nice wool shirt and wool socks, a trip to Atlantic City, some books and video games, etc. And yet, my expenses are at the same level as when I was struggling to hit $2500 when I owned a car. That's one reason I'm so excited that I'm changing apartments early next year (around March). I believe that will save me about $300-$400 per month.